Television antenna with a wind engaging vane



July 27, 1965 B. L. sAJuLA'N 3,197,773

TELEVISION ANTENNA WITH A WIND ENGAGING VANE Filed Sept. 6, 196:

INVENTOR. 3121220 L. Say'ulcw BY I WWW/aw United States Patent.

3,197,778 ""ELEVESISN ANTENNA WITH A W ENGAGWG VANE Bruno L. Sajulan, Stockton, Calif, assignor to Bruno L.

Saiulan and Conception T. Sajulan, his wife, as joint tenants Filed Sept. 6, 1963, Ser. No. 307,035 4 Claims. (Cl. 343757) This invention relates to television antennae of that general type which, due to variou conditions obtaining Where the television set for the antenna is to be used, must be projected upwardly some distance into the air from the building in which the television set is mounted, and hence is exposed to any wind which may blow past the antenna.

It has been found that a vertical screen forms an extremely efiicicnt medium for receiving any signals which may be transmitted from the sending station, but such screens obviously present a wind obstructing surface of such size as to impart sever strains to the antenna as a whole and to the supporting mast.

It is, therefore, the principal object of my invention to provide an antenna so constructed that while the above noted efiicient signal receiving screens are used in its construction, wind actuated means is provided which will cause the screens to be disposed in substantial alinement with the wind, regardless of the direction in which the wind may be blowing.

Essentially, the antenna comprises, with a supporting mast, a Vertically disposed open frame turnably mounted on the mast, vertical signal receiving screens mounted in the frame, and a wind vane mounted on the frame beyond the screens in alinement with the frame so as to dispose the antenna as a whole in line with the wind direction.

A further object of the invention is to arrange the signal receiving screens in the frame so that they will adequately receive the signals regardless of the wind direction and the corresponding setting of the antenna.

A further object of the invention is to provide a television antenna which is designed for ease and economy of manufacture.

A still further object of the invention is to provide a practical, reliable, and durable television antenna, and one which is exceedingly eifective for the purpose for which it is designed.

These objects are accomplished by means of such structure and relative arrangement of parts as will fully appear by a perusal of the following specification and claims.

In the drawings:

FIG. 1 is a side elevation of the improved television antenna, shown as mounted on the upper end of a supporting mast.

FIG. 2 is a top plan view of the antenna.

Referring now more particularly to the drawings and to the characters of reference marked thereon, the antenna, indicated generally at 1, comprises a horizontally elongated rectangular frame 2, disposed in a vertical plane, and divided into two frame sections 3 of equal size by a central post 4. The post 4 projects both upwardly and downwardly some distance from the frame 2, and at its lower end is turnably mounted in a suitable manner in the upper end of a supporting mast 5 which is held against deflection by guy wires 6 arranged in the usual manner.

Positioned in each frame section 3 and occupying substantially the entire area thereof is a signal receiving metallic screen unit 7. Each screen unit is of elongated quadrilateral equal-sided diamond form in plan, with its resultant relatively sharp cornered ends facing and alined with the vertical ends of the corresponding frame section,

as clearly shown in FIG. 2. Each screen unit, therefore, has four signal receiving panels 8, each facing in a different direction, so that one or the other of the panels will intersect and receive a signal-from a sending station in a given location-no matter which way the antenna may be turned.

The metallic screen units 7 are secured in the related frame sections 3 by corner insulation members 9 which hold such units in spaced relation to the metal of the frame sections.

The signals received by the screen units are fed by wires 13 which extend to a ring 11 fixed in insulated relation on the post 4 above but adjacent the mast 5, and engaging-in relatively turnable relation-a collector ring 12 on the mast 5 at its upper end. Suitable lead-in Wiring 13 feeds the collected signals from the ring 12 to the television set below.

The relatively close-woven nature of the screen units 7 would cause any substantial wind, which might be blowing, to impart a severe strain on the screens and on the mast should such wind strike the screen units generally at a right angle to the plane of the frame 2. To relieve the antenna of any strong Wind pressure, a rigid plate-like vane 14 extends outwardly from one end of the frame 2 parallel to and alined with said frame; such vane 1 being rigidly secured to the adjacent end of the frame. The lower edge of the vane is preferably alined with the lower edge of the frame 2. At the top, however, the vane extends some distance above the frame 2 and is there formed with a somewhat narrow inward projection 15 which clears the top of the frame 2 and is secured against the upper end of the central post 4, as shown in FIG. 1.

As the antenna 1 is rotatably mounted, the vane 14-in response to wind pressure-will at all times maintain the antenna in a position extending lengthwise in the direction of the wind and which substantially relieves the screen units from such pressure. At the same time, and by reason of the relative positions of said panels 8, at least one thereof will always be in generally intersecting or receiving relation to a signal from a sending station in a given location.

From the foregoing description, it will be readily seen that there has been produced such a device as substantially fulfills the objects of the invention, as set forth herein.

While this specification sets forth in detail the present and preferred construction of the device, still in practice such deviations from such detail may be resorted to as do not form a departure from the spirit of the invention, as defined by the appended claims.

Having thus described the invention, the following is claimed as new and useful and upon which Letters Patent is desired:

1. A television antenna comprising, with a fixed support, a frame disposed in a vertical plane above the support, means turnably mounting the frame on the support for rotation about a vertical axis, a signal receiving screen mounted in the frame and disposed in a vertical plane, and a wind engaging vane fixed on the frame substantially parallel to the screen; the screen being of elongated diamond form in a horizontal plane and the major axis of the screen being parallel to the vane.

2. A television antenna comprising, with a fixed support, a rectangular frame disposed in a vertical plane above the support, a vertical post rigid with the frame depending therefrom and turnably mounted in the support, a signal receiving screen disposed in a vertical plane and mounted in the frame in insulated relation thereto a collector ring mounted on the support, means to feed signals received by the screen to the ring irrespective of the rotative position of the frame and screen relative to a a the support, and a wind engaging vane fixed on and projecting from one end of the frame substantially parallel to the screen.

3. A television antenna comprising, with a fixed support, a rectangular horizontally elongated frame disposed in a vertical plane above the support, a vertical post rigid with the frame centrally of its ends depending from the frame and turnably mounted in the support, signal receiving screens mounted in the frame in insulated relation thereto on opposite sides of the plane of the post a collector ring mounted on the support, means to feed signals received by the screens to the ring irrespective of the rotative position of the frame and screens relative to the support, and a wind engaging vane fixed on and projecting from one end of the frame substantially parallel to the screens.

4. A television antenna comprising, with a fixed support, a rectangular horizontally elongated frame disposed in a vertical plane above the support, a vertical post rigid with the frame centrally of its ends depending from the top of the frame to a point below the same and turnably mounted at its lower end in the upper end of the support, a signal receiving screen unit disposed in the frame on each side of the post and substantially filling the frame area between the post and the adjacent end of the frame, means mounting the screen units in the frame in insulated relation thereto and to the post, the screen units being each elongated diamond shaped form in plan and the major axes of the units being alined and extending lengthwise of the frame, a ring mounted on the post adjacent the support in insulated relation to said post, Wires connecting the screen units and said ring, a collector ring mounted on the support in cooperating relation with the first named ring, lead-in wiring connected to and depending from the collector ring, and a wind-engaging vane projecting away from one end of the frame and substantially alined with the axes of the screen units, said vane extending for the full height of the frame and being rigidly secured thereto.

References Cited by the Examiner UNITED STATES PATENTS 2,947,989 8/60 Ford et a1. 343757 FOREIGN PATENTS 868,961 2/59 Great Britain.

HERMAN KARL SAALBACH, Primary Examiner. 

1. A TELEVISION ANTENNA COMPRISING, WITH A FIXED SUPPORT, A FRAME DISPOSED IN A VERTICAL PLANE ABOVE THE SUPPORT, MEANS TURNABLY MOUNTING THE FRAME ON THE SUPPORT FOR ROTATION ABOUTT A VERTICAL AXIS, A SIGNAL RECEIVING SCREEN MOUNTED IN THE FRAME AND DISPOSED IN A VERTICAL PLANE, AND A WIND ENGAGING VANE FIXED ON THE FRAME SUBSTANTIALLY PARALLEL TO THE SCREEN; THE SCREEN BEING OF ELONGATED DIAMOND FORM IN A HORIZONTAL PLANE AND THE MAJOR AXIS OF THE SCREEN BEING PARALLEL TO THE VANE. 